Thursday, 28 April 2016

While struggling with the Airfix Blenheims recently, I picked up the Zvezda Junkers Ju 88 G-6 again. I am amazed to think that it is five years since I started this kit and that I haven't touched it in all that time.

It is a great looking kit, for less than half the cost of the Hasegawa model. I have replaced the rather short tail fin with the Quickboost resin replacement and fitted the AIMS resin Jumo engines as the Jumo charger intakes supplied in the kit are very poor - perhaps copied from the equally poor Hasegawa intakes.

Engines on and the new tail has also been fitted. The undercarriage - as on most Ju 88 kits - was far too 'stalk-like' and has been cut down a little and repinned. Still a little unsure of which machine I actually want to model, but my choice will no doubt be inspired by the latest AIMs decal sheet - Ju 88 Fighters which arrived here last week.

Sunday, 17 April 2016

Second Tuesday of the month is club night for the East Kent Scale modellers group. The group meets at the RAF Manston history museum. Recent and/or current builds go on the table along with photo albums, books and magazines. A chance to look at the latest museum exhibits and rummage around the shop, enjoy some modelling chat and pick up hints and tips of all sorts!

David's Hasegawa Me 163 and Tamiya Beaufighter

Dick's Southern Expo medal-winning Panther and Mosquito conversion (Paragon), along with a Special Hobby Maryland and Joe's Batman figure

Stu's Tamiya Zero in 72nd

Some excellent work on display this month, the new Airfix Meteor was passed around and I took the chance to grab some difficult-to-access views of the museum's TT 20 on display and grab some pics of models in the museum's display cabinets donated by club modellers.

Monday, 11 April 2016

My second Airfix new-tool Blenheim finished in 25 Sqd markings, ZK-I, RAF North Weald, February 1941. Fighter belly gun-pack taken from the Blenheim IV kit, decals by ROPOS models from Czech, a limited edition sheet printed to 200 copies that I found on Hannant's site.

Not a particularly 'photogenic' aircraft - difficult to get a shot I was happy with

Some of the Blenheim reference I used - the Airframe book from Valiant Wings is really very good and great value for money..as are the French-language monographs produced by Lela Presse

Thursday, 7 April 2016

Finally! I've managed to finish the first of my new-tool Airfix Blenheim Is - although it 'looks' like a nicely detailed replica for a new-tool I have to say that I hate this kit! A terrible build experience, worse than the worst of any short-run non-fitting builds I've ever done. Be warned, nothing fits, apart from the undercarriage! Just about everything else required much fettling and filing and filling! My transparencies were short-shot and Hornby never came back with any replacements either. Fortunately a fellow-Britmodeller from Australia sent me a spare sprue that he had so it was while waiting for that to arrive that I very rashly decided to start a second Airfix Blenheim Mk I which I was a little happier with - but not much! Here's the first one in the markings of UQ-R of No. 211 Squadron seen in Greece in 1941 (note the 'R' was not displayed on the aircraft..)

IWM pictures of the machine modelled, licence-fee-free reproduction via the IWM site

Below; the Commanding Officer of No. 211 Squadron RAF, Squadron Leader J R Gordon-Finlayson, and his wireless operator/air gunner, Pilot Officer A C Geary, photographed in a Bristol Blenheim Mark I at Menidi/Tatoi, Greece, after returning from Corfu. On 24 November 1941, Gordon-Finlayson's aircraft was hit by anti-aircraft fire during a bombing raid on Valona, Albania. Unable to reach Menidi, he force-landed on a beach at Corfu, where he and his crew were toasted and feted before returning to the mainland by fishing boat and rejoining their unit. Gordon-Finalyson is carrying bottles of wine and other gifts given to them by their Greek hosts.